A Blogging Blog of sorts

My artwork and layout in "The Ten Commandments of Getting Pregnant" !!!!

2011-12-05T16:46:00.002+10:00

Getting Pregnant with LumaLoveGettingPregnant.com

Miaow, miaow; woof woof!

2011-11-10T17:03:00.000+10:00

Adobe Illustrator CS4

Fractals in Time

2011-10-17T20:37:00.001+10:00

Changing Identity thru SuperImposition

2011-04-30T19:06:00.000+10:00

Fractals

2011-04-30T14:51:00.000+10:00

Fractals

2011-04-17T20:17:00.000+10:00

radiance

the cosmos

the fabric of the universe

the one song behind all

meditate

focus

dream

be all

now

in this moment

forever

I create my fractals using one of the original fractal generating programs that was developed I guess in the mid to late 90's called Tiera-zon. It is lots of fun mining for fractals with it! I am really happy with the meditator buddha type figure that came through in the one above. Can you see it? You do get an eye for common patterns that emerge in playing around with fractals, and this one is special. :)

blind shadows

2011-03-19T19:01:00.000+10:00

in your wildest dreams

2011-03-19T18:55:00.000+10:00

Tierazon fractal generator,

Illustrator and Photoshop

Degenerated Regenerated Fractal Manipulation

2011-03-13T15:18:00.000+10:00

my mind is more acrobatic than my body

click me

you know you wanna

click me

the Bipolarity of Life

2010-11-27T06:06:00.000+10:00

sometimes it feels like life is bipolar

normalcy....

incredible, synchronicities, things that make you go WOW

... normalcy

There's been dips into the tragic, for sure

but there is a balance

of beautiful things happening

Thankyou Life

Rousseau's Unicat.

Etching. 10 /11 11-11-2010

Photo courtesy of Sylvia :)

Nightmares

2010-10-15T10:44:00.001+10:00

A Little Birdy told me...

2010-06-07T13:44:00.002+10:00

something questionable...

Quote from my Favourite Book, "Black Anna"

2010-05-20T17:24:00.001+10:00

click for larger view

Lucky a Blog Isn't Like a Pet !!!!

2010-05-17T22:26:00.000+10:00

Or this page would be dead!

But hang on... it IS virtually dead!!!!

Well, not quite... you see, it has just been so busy in the background!!!!

I am loving TAFE... yep, went through a period there where it all somehow seemed pointless... but now I get the point... and I am just loving how much more confident and better an artist I am !!! The various classes do seem to effect each other, for example illustration directly reflects how I perceive which direction to go in my painting, which gives me ideas for digital art... and so it goes !

The big teaching job I was counting on to pay the next semester of TAFE fell through... plus I find I am wanting to fine hone my focus and me more specific in the area of digital art. So next semester I begin an external Diploma in Commercial Art (Graphic Design) which will zero in on what I really most wanna learn. it's covered by a vocational training loan scheme through the government, yaay ! I am hoping to still attend digital art at TAFE and maybe one other subject just to keep the regularity of a class environment and keep me motivated and disciplined. Well, it's still all in the nutting out phase... so we shall see what transpires!

On a personal note, so much has been happening! One major life changing highlight has been the birth of my niece, Jenifer... as I got to be present at her grand entrance into the world!

... isn't she beautiful???

I also got creative and did something lairy playing and learning about photoshop layers... about our cat Bella...

if you click on the pic

you will get a bigger view!

OK just a little catchup... shall close with some fun that was had with face paints !!!

TalysMana Be A Character Contest entry.

2010-03-25T15:54:00.008+10:00

impopia (imp:'эupıэ) n. state of being in one's creative power

Introducing your new TalysMana character...

a sister fighter of entropy & the Bleak...

I have lived by my creative wits for the

better part of 3 decades...

"You should get a REAL job" says the Bleak...

gnashing 9 to 5 jaws...

uh huh

I have followed many of my dreams...

you might have seen my book on the shelves,

"Oracle of the Dreamtime."

If you need, I'll give you guidance

from my unpublished oracle,

"Inner Journeys"...

it may cast light when the Bleak befuddles...

Imagine, your very own seer...
even if my house is a mess and looks ransacked, don't despair,
I can always find my cards, ok... trust me on this one!!!!

P.S. I also do reiki and am a trained bodywork therapist,
sounds like you need something there after being half killed...

I can also see things in the shadows,

things many miss, or say

are just a play of the light...

imagination in flight...

Hey, I have even sometimes managed to photograph

strange unexpected things...
between lightcross and shadowcross to be sure...

Is this a Guide, or a distorted Spirit?

No, it's my dog jumping up at me...

or is it?

As well, I might have some uses with advice

in case the glass bit in your amulet breaks,

I am sure I can fix that crack that lets the darkness see you...

and NO I am not picking my nose there!!!!

Look at what I make to keep the Bleak at bay!

pretty, huh?

Ya know why I think you'll love me as a character, luv?

Not just all the sparkly beads and stuff

(yeah, I love making fractals and paint and write too...
and sometimes play my flute or bake a nice banana cake...)

I bet you never ever had an Aussie in any of ya books...
betcha betcha betcha...

I even grew up beyond the Black Stump!

No flies on me, no siree...

Also, if helpful, I come
(free of charge, optional extra)
with a feisty sidekick

she can slay bad guys in one foul swoop...

(Her name is, really, Pixie.)

we'll fight for you even in the pits of Hell...

OH!

one more more thing,

if all else fails... a sure fire fix...

a cure-all against the Bleak...

let me make you a cuppa!

Now that's creating something
magnificent... yeah!

See,
Kettan and TalysMana
~~want~~ need me !!!

TalysMana.com Be A Character In
TalysMana
Contest Entry

Miaou !!!

2010-03-09T20:54:00.002+10:00

Oodles of Life

2010-03-05T07:34:00.002+10:00

it just oodles on ya know

walking one's path

at least do it with colour...

Catchup !

2010-02-25T18:14:00.001+10:00

I don't even have a picture to put up today because I have reformatted my pc and haven't even made a fractal let alone taken bead photos... nothing on my hard drive boo hoo... I did manage to take photos of my daughter's dog bitten leg but instead you can just pretend there is something awesome here, ok.....

Tafe... I LOVE it !!!! Yaaaaaaay for meeeeeeeee! My main reasons behind this are I have been largely an eccentric hermit for closer to two decades and this is my way of weaning myself into the world again as well as in the hope of finally working out what I wanna be when I grow up comes to me... yeah!

I am doing painting, drawing. ceramics, sculpture, digital art and colour theory... did I tell you I LOVE it ????

Ok just realised the time... eeek... got my only night class to get ready for... thanks for checking in and next time I should start off with some glass eye candy, yeah....

Seeking the Light...

2010-02-03T07:52:00.000+10:00

This fractal I created from a photo I took of a moth

on my window, trying to reach the light...

in its mathematical essence

is a cocoon

with its own internal life force

Little does the moth know

what it seeks externally

it already has within...

Back on Da Bay... !!!

2010-01-21T22:44:00.000+10:00

I am back on Ebay!
Look here... X

Pointless

2010-01-20T20:25:00.000+10:00

There is no point to life

it is utterly pointless

that's because

it's a spiral...

My first rambling on bead movie... what do ya think, eh?

2010-01-19T22:24:00.001+10:00

Illusions

2010-01-18T19:26:00.000+10:00

Sometimes

the whole concept of reality

spins me out

like a dancer twirling under lights

then

the lights dim,

the dancer is gone...

to what avail?

hedonism sounds very good in theory

but what pleasure is there is pain?

as light highlights shadows

life is a double-edged gift

masochistic hedonism might be the answer

then everything is

perfection

My Mantle

2010-01-18T00:08:00.000+10:00

Weariness

is like a mantle

I want to wrap myself in

bed

a soft womb cloak

around me

and dive the depths of

unknowingness

Tangled World

2010-01-09T19:01:00.000+10:00

sometimes the world

is so tangled up

it's a mess

? ? ?

2010-01-08T12:19:00.001+10:00

sylph of the skies

Fractal Art created from a photo

2010-01-07T19:58:00.000+10:00

the complexity of life astounds me

interconnections

threads from the past

hints at the future

uncertainties with a larger pattern

that is anything but uncertain

its all perspective

What Is and What Isn't Is

2010-01-03T19:58:00.000+10:00

sometimes what you see

isn't what you see at all

it is most peculiar

Life's Curve Balls are really Snags

2010-01-03T00:36:00.001+10:00

Now and then

Life throws the odd curve ball

snags in the flow

not to keep us off balance

but to keep us more vigilant

Confuzzled...

2009-12-30T05:33:00.000+10:00

up at 3am confoozled !!!

puzzlation !!!

huh?

Can't remember going to bed last night

besides, I am still in day clothes

this is just too weird!

the only logical conclusion I can come to

I must have been abducted by aliens!

Life Changes

2009-12-29T01:37:00.000+10:00

sometimes life can change in a split instant

things are never the same again

no matter what

Self- Portrait

2009-12-28T18:26:00.000+10:00

with two pet tales ...

Have been on a spate of self portraits lately and actually happy with results.

Especially because to me, they don't resemble me!!!

One does not like, as a rule, being photographed!

Being very obsessive with various projects and accomplishing a lot...

Gotta love those inspired and productive times! New ideas, multi-media, glass... yaay!

Bring on 2010 - its gonna be an awesome year!

Hope it is for you too somehow... yes? Good intentions, yes?

Back to it!

PS Dvorak is still awesome ! Now typing almost as quick as I can think... sometimes!

Spud as Spirit...

2009-12-27T00:06:00.003+10:00

eye see you

2009-12-26T23:31:00.002+10:00

Fractal Formulations

2009-12-17T22:52:00.001+10:00

organic

eternal

form

Delving in Dvorak

2009-12-17T19:11:00.003+10:00

I'm teaching myself Dvorak! I've never learnt to touch type, and I am a two fingered (albeit pretty fast) typist... It's served me well however with the repetitive motion of lampwork and typing, I occasionally get pains... aaah, it could be old age creeping along but I deny that aspect... and what better way to rejuvenate youth than to stretch the brain cells with an entirely new learning curve since it's the Christmas break? Ja?

Dvorak is a "new" keyboard. It's not so new, invented a hundred years ago or something, but it makes perfect sense. There is a more recent development- Colemak - however not supported in computer settings - so I decided to go with Dvorak. One of the pointers advocates of Colemak use is that Dvorak is already decades old... however the style of keyboards have not changed, I can't see the concept behind Dvorak changing or dating... so I shall stick with that! (Plus there is universal Windows support for Dvorak.)

Typewriters were developed so the keys would not jamb, so they had to have an inbuilt impediment which was achieved by the location of the keys to slow the typist down. And it's stuck! Literally & figuratively! Dvorak has not taken off, even tho the world's fastest typist used it. I guess some things are hard to change, and just the switch from qwerty to dvorak takes a period of time when output is slow as the new skill is mastered.

I have been learning via several free online tutorials. These are my top three:

#1 Favorite This one is FUN, and it has GAMES! It's now my favourite, woo hoo!!!!! It also shows you what fingers to use where... yeah, baby!

#2 This is is a little out of sync with the above, in that letters are introduced at different times. It's simple type in the box!

#3 This one fits the above... the letters seem to be introduced at the same time... This one highlights the word as you type it. I like that... a bit of action !!!!

It has been surprisingly easy to learn. The first two days were a hard slog getting the home row in periods of ten or fifteen minutes several times during the day, however now on day 3 there's been a huge learning curve! I am currently doing my hunt and peck on qwerty, and I believe because both use a different muscle memory I'll be able to keep both skills... I don't know enough keys yet to type fully in Dvorak! Maybe next week!

I think the way to make this learning curve fun and not boring is to mix and match different typing tutorials.

On top of this, I have splurged and am getting myself a new keyboard! Ooooh, excitement, a new toy!!!! Once again, common sense seems to be at the fore with this intelligent design... instead of staggered keys like a typewriter, this board is designed in straight rows, and supposedly supports how the muscles in our fingers really work... Well, we shall see, huh! I chose the qwerty board with a Dvorak skin, sexy black of course... so I really am committed to making Dvorak work!

I am going to TAFE next year for a creative / visual arts course... yep, finally committed myself to SOMETHING and in anticipation of a complete change of lifestyle, I also reasoned my delving in Dvorak will get the ol' neurons pumping - YEAH!!!!

Maybe, at the rate I seem to be churning out the blog posts, my next one will be in Dvorak... but YOU won;t be able to tell, hehehe.... ;p

Playing Catchup....

2009-12-01T07:21:00.000+10:00

Our cat Larry and his obsession...

Ye most neglected blog... here I am... for a brief update !!!!!

Begin at the end... Went to Sydney for ten days, marvelous reunion with family and some friends xxx Purpose of said trip, my daughter Nirrimi was put into the final 3 for the Spirit of Youth Australia awards!

Link #1
Link #2

Next news item, I will be teaching next year at an incredible festival !!!! (And I'll get to meet Loren Stump - woot! woot!)

Here's the link of my classes - HERE!

Myself, life oodles on, ya know... this has been my "bludge year" with bead sales UGH, and maybe a midlife crisis - what do I do when I grow up???? I have been working on my novel based on my real life spiritual quest, dabbing some paint on canvas here and there, overall... one day at a time waiting for a cosmic epiphany!!!!!!

Thanks for checking in... yes I do still live n breathe.... xxxx

Castle Hill

2009-11-02T21:50:00.000+10:00

something about these photos... I like...

ancient monolith ~ Castle Hill

icon of Townsville

fun exploring

New Beginnings....

2009-08-28T18:19:00.000+10:00

happychama preposterous is flowering for first time

lotsa pinkies

Yer, I've been quiet... for now... vote for Spud !!!!

2009-08-21T21:14:00.001+10:00

For Spud

MEMBER OF THE Cat PARTY

Click here to vote for Spud at VoteMyPet.com.au

My Home is an Obstacle Course

2009-07-13T17:41:00.003+10:00

my home is an ObStaCle course

between pleasure and functionality

Fractals

2009-07-08T20:47:00.003+10:00

Embryo Crescents

Divine Feminine

Man in the Moon, Where We Go

Masked Fractals

2009-07-08T20:45:00.002+10:00

What do you wish to Nurture? Wishcasting

2009-07-05T23:59:00.007+10:00

Nurture

U tend

Really allow to grow

To care n protect

U watch, and wait

R U Ready?

Enjoy.....

Nurture

U tend

Really allow to grow

To care n protect

U tend

R U Ready?

Enjoy.....

Nurture

U tend

Really allow to grow

To care n protect

U watch, and wait

R U Ready?

Enjoy.....

I wish to nurture my nurturing abilities as a parent, in the garden, and in my life; for me...

****

Wishcasting Wednesday

****

My phone is a shark

2009-06-28T23:12:00.003+10:00

the telephone is ringing

it feels like a hungry shark circling me

with its ring tones...

sharp teeth gnashing

wanting to eat bits of me

little nibbles

maybe a limb here

a digit there

I wont answer it

it bites

Townsville West End Cemetery, last night :)

2009-06-27T20:53:00.004+10:00

Seed of Past, Present & Future (Fractal)

2009-06-25T21:13:00.003+10:00

click image to enlarge

What do you wish to savour? Wishcasting

2009-06-25T18:27:00.011+10:00

I've decided to join in on Wishcasting Wednesday via Starshyne Productions blog as a way of stretching my abilities as a writer! Plus I like Jamie's slant on things... good for introspection. A therapist once told me, not too many years ago, that I do not commit to anything... and in many things, he was right. So let's see how we go here!!!!!

I wish to savour the process of being a part of this-

every week!!!!

What else do I wish to savour? I think of taste as obvious, but not just of food, but of sensations and dreams.. savour is to enjoy... relish... stretch each moment out and accept. I wish to savour life more fully.

So many food words for savour - relish, have your cake and eat it too, the icing on the cake, oooh too many sweet food, how about world peas? Now THAT would be something to savour!

Savour is like the word savior How can I be a savoir in the world? and to myself?

And save... like save all the positives within me, and bounce off the negatives...

I sound like I am a photo self-developing now... LOL

Lots of things to think about, and ... savour!!!!

Thankyou Jamie for the Wishcasting prompt... :)

Illusory Freedom

2009-06-21T22:02:00.000+10:00

Leap into Freedom, Bella

2009-06-21T16:32:00.009+10:00

Bella and Larry, January 2009

Ed told me "animals don't emotionalise disability"

Love you Bella, miss you soooo much.... When I cross over I will be overjoyed to hold you again, a perfect cat, a true friend, a soul I love... Thankyou for letting me be a part of your life...

Photo by Nirrimi 2008 or 2007

Creaky House

2009-06-14T19:45:00.006+10:00

Sometimes

it sounds like

someone is walking through

But there's no one there.

National Youth Week SnapIT Junior

2009-06-05T10:37:00.001+10:00

Vote for Nirrimi!

Cos she is just the best - yes? YES!!!!!!

The Hum

2009-05-15T21:22:00.009+10:00

I thought I was the only one who could hear it,
that maybe it was a form of hearing disorder,
or something physiological...
until I asked her if she could hear it.
And she could.

It's not always there when you listen.

Candy Eyes: Latest Bead Macros

2009-04-30T20:21:00.003+10:00

Blogite Neglection - Is that a Word?

2009-04-30T19:19:00.007+10:00

Well it is now! I've been busy. Took some great photos last weekend at Paradise Waterhole... went gingerly tiptoing from rock to rock in the gorge... found some beautiful driftwood... and took lots of photos. Because it was bright, I couldn't tell from the lcd screen that my exposure was out, so most of my pictures were originally too bright and had to be adjusted. Well, it turned out ok in the end I think, I am really pleased with some of these shots... :)

Sun Web Capture

Water, Rock, Shadow

A russet ring I've had since childhood...

a moment to pause and reflect

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Life just sometimes gets in the way! Well, blogging life anyway! Time is, as they say, fleeting!

Easter, visitors, a recent spurt of inspiration in glass, day to day stuff... it all just zooms by in an almost whirr sometimes, doesn't it! For me, it's a whirr of inanities as much as significance and wonder... a good balance, if not a bit too hectic at times! Fish & chips on the Strand, precious young nieces, toddler kisses and scowls, laughing, family, happy times, nature, fun, melting some glass into a handful of speccy beads, sweetest kitten love, engrossed in a novel, a magpie family visiting, growing gardens and children... it's all happening... incessantly... :))

* * * * *

This last photo needed a bit of processing to get it "legible" and "just right"! Something about this ancient looking, massive deadwood tree in a still pond just grabs me somehow...

Taken from the bridge as you leave Paradise Waterhole...

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW

Family update

2009-03-30T21:35:00.003+10:00

OK Family update time, thanks for the nudge Trace :) Happy to oblige...

From youngest up...

Ruby stands still long enuf she gets a growth...

the two spend so much time racing around like maniacs

its awesomely entertaining!

Tho, as you can see on the right, Larry's curiosity

makes it kinda hard for me to do my work...

yes, he's sitting in my brand new light tent...

onya Laz!!!!!

Hmmmm I cannot suss this formatting!!!!!

LOL

The boy is studying an accredited course to become a 3D animator...

He got 100% completing his first module!

The girls in the Pink Room are 1) still budding photographer and 2) Bartlelina Simsonella when on a riptstik!

(I am intentionally not mentioning number 1's name because she has such a huge online following, her name is one of a kind and often googled, so in essence, I am respecting her privacy - plus she would kill me for revealing the dreadful pink room, her mess and her undies showing...)

To the right, ripstikker is on the right, with her cousin :)

Children are pretty cool critters most of the time,

pretty time consuming too, and create a bit of mess and work,

but I love them big time mobs!

Every weekend Miss P is with me, we ride to the Riverway for a swim... now that place is so pretty major awesome... we love it heaps...

So yes, we are all well, life is pretty much ok. My studio dummy Miss Molly now sits on the verandah. I thought she might keep the mynah birds away but no go... As we live opposite a kinda public walkway/park I often see people pointing to her so now I move her around and change her clothes.... fun huh? Right now she is at the side, waving to cars going by...

Cheerios...

Left To Your Own Imagination No Longer

2009-03-21T15:55:00.006+10:00

I am

still

here

Yep,

that's me.

So much has happened,

did you know I have moved house?

I live upstairs now.

I like it.

I like watching finches in the trees

and magpies foraging

with ibis

from above

the sky seems closer

We have a new family member.

Let me introduce

Larry Burt.

It's a bit tricky to tell from photos

Larry is very High Energy...

As well as a new cat,

I have a new coffee mug....

cool, huh?

;))

Light Seeker

2009-03-10T21:29:00.000+10:00

Life is Duality -

2009-02-26T22:21:00.002+10:00

There he is, caught in movement,

damaged, hurt, water speckled

beautiful.

He comes from this garden...

such serenity

holding in it's heart

Suffering and Death...

In good cheer....

Journeys... Destinations...

2009-02-24T11:20:00.006+10:00

They say,

it isn't the destination,

so much as the journey.

Stopping

to look closely

finding the discarded treasures..

is as much the journey

as moving....

2008-12-14T21:42:00.000+10:00

Things that Need to be Fixed

2008-12-05T06:12:00.005+10:00

* a settlement should be compulsory when a couple separate. This could be linked with tax department or centrelink benefits (if applicable.) There must be literally thousands of women who decide the fallout (on themselves or kids) is not worth however many dollars and as a result suffer hardship, in the short term and/or long term. There would also be many women (especially) who were escaping domestic violence situations who are just too scared - let's face it, a DVO does not stop violence - by forcing a fair and equitable settlement it takes the 'personal vendetta' attitude and personal issues out of the equation.

* rents need to be more closely adjusted to the CPI. There should be no discrimination between someone needing a rental bond board loan versus someone who has the money.

* The Department of Housing needs to do an audit as many people in their fifties (eg) up, with kids left home, are living in 3 - 4 bedroom houses on their own

* The government needs to review its jobserach requirements for single parents, bringing the age up from 6 years to an age where the children might be at least safe if left untended. OK this is a hard one, even leaving teenage kids untended might not be the smartest but it is much more feasible than 6 where childcare spaces are limited and costly, espcially on school holidays. There is no childcare for children after year 7! Also, sole parents should be allowed extra sick leave to cover them if their children become ill.

* The compulsory 4-6 week, 40 hour week jobearch requirement for single parents to attend jobsearch training needs to be re-evaluated and adjust to the 15 hours, and needs to include sole parent specific support.

* there should be specific exemptions from jobsearch requirements when for example, the sole parent is being evicted from their rental home. Those on government benefits are seeking rental accomodation in a very tight, limited market and it is time consuming (and costly) to get to real estate agents for a key, look at the house, and back to the agent. On top of this, there is the expense of moving, which contributes stress to the sole parent who, on top of getting kids to school, homework, the chores involved with being a parent, etc is also required to search for jobs. And should they not take an offered job, they lose their benefits for 8 weeks if they say no. This is all unfair, and it is an unreasonable demand in the period between being served eviction notice and moving to the next accommodation. Parents that also need to obtain ongoing specific help for their children, such as psychologists, etc need to be exempt. The cut off point for job search requirements is four children, but does not take into account parents with special needs kids who are not on a disability or carers pension. It also does not take into account sole parents with four or more kids who are in a share care 50/50 situation, as these parents have the same jobsearch requirements as those with less than four kids. Perhaps fortnightly volunteeer work, when they are without their children, could be an option.

* as there is maternity leave and sick leave, there should also be a re-housing leave for sole parents who work and are facing eviction

* maintenance NEEDS to take into account hours not nights. Children have one meal at night then sleep for hours not requiring time and attention, food, etc. My case, for example, I look after my child before school and after school while her father works, taking her there and picking her up (minimum 15 hours) as well as between 7.30 - anywhere between 4.30 - 6pm during school holidays however maintenance takes none of this into account because she sleeps there at night. I could insist he find alternate childcare for her, but is that fair on the child? Who is the loser here?

I think that's it... for now....

Curious Photo

2008-11-17T21:16:00.001+10:00

I took this photo with my pentax spotamatic in the mid to late 80's

Ala Bashir - A Chance Encounter

2008-11-13T20:01:00.004+10:00

Ala Bashir

I know I am repeating a previous post here. The original I wrote in January 20th this year. In some way, re-reading brought back the magic and I just wanted to re-post...

This is one of my most treasured experiences in life... and in some ways (like now) my blog is like my own personal post-it cyber noteboard ;)) .......

plus
it's good to sometimes be reminded of wonderful things...

* * *

I am
The Girl on the Bus
Heathrow to Leicester,
4.30 - 7.35pm
Friday the 14th of December 2007

Front row seat
to watch the view
I am a foreigner journeying
a new path
forgetting darkness descends early
leaving only blackness
interpersed with lights
a view of monotony

The outward journey takes a detour,
turns into an inward journey
one that is shared and is
unexpected

The gentleman asks,
may I sit here?

Of course...

Thus innocently begins an epic three hour conversation
an unforgettable, precious conversation
on life
and love
and beauty
on death
and sacrifice
and almost every aspect of our shared passion, art
on quantum physics
and the machinations of
destiny.

His art is big, gigantic, it grasps your attention
My art is miniature with details that need attention

I am a plastic surgeon, say Ala
I once fixed the ravages of war
but now I correct perceived flaws...
I am ashamed of what I do
I create beauty where none was
and there is always a marriage within three months
In my art, I seek to reveal the inner beauty
that is my current focus

(But Ala, in reshaping people
you create external beauty so
they then find internal beauty to match...
so you are creating
love, which is beauty inner and outer...)

Love is sacrifice, says Ala.
I intellectually see that... but I disagree too
why should love be identified by pain?
It is like using the dark
to notice the light..

Aaaah, says Ala...
what other benchmark COULD there be?
I am left wondering and empty of a reply

We both agree true love
is unconditional
as a mother symbolizes
the greatest love there can be...
and Jesus is that too
a symbol
of a goal
or meaning
of a reason

Love crosses time and space too says Ala
as he describes when he was attacked and grievously injured
by a knife wielding maniac.
My mother knew and she was miles away.
I asked God that if I should live
that I will forgive that man
I lived, made the choice
and there was forgiveness.
Easy. Just make the choice.

Do you believe in God, says I?
We trudge lightly into metaphysics and
the meaning of the world...
and what is safety?

Safety is in the symbol of the bed, says Ala
we spend so much time there too.
In my exhibition I had an iron wrought bed cut in half
and placed on the wall...

But bed is not safe for those sexually abused there, says I...

Ala says once they see the pain in the bed
see their pain in the dismembered, violated bed
maybe they begin to see the safety of the bed
in his paintings, then maybe
in their homes.
Art can be healing in confrontation
make you journey inwards
to find your own recovery...

Maybe we were meant to meet, says Ala.
There is no chance.
Quantum physics.. destiny... things have a reason
it might be decades later
but there is always a reason

I agree whole heartedly,
feeling myself stretched in my vision of my world that now includes Ala,
exhilarated, intrigued, fascinated, confident...
ignorant in truly understanding
who
Dr Ala Bashir is
to the
whole
world...

Holistic Pulsing

2008-11-13T19:41:00.002+10:00

Unconditional Love

2008-11-01T10:08:00.005+10:00

If we perceive a handicap

do we reject it

because it isn't perfect?

Do you maybe reject parts of yourself -
turn off the tap of self-acceptance -
because faults are
reprehensible?

Some relationships
require work
but the growth and joy and love
is worth all the difficulty

Thankyou Pixie for taking these photos of our beautiful paralysed cat BELLA.

Bella had a bad bladder infection last week
our dear Dr Ed came to the rescue.

I was very scared Bella was going to die!!!!

Yes, I sometimes think,
it would be a much easier life not having to express bladder
(and bowel too if its full)
Not having to dress or worry about dragging sores
so many little things to worry about
because BELLA is not perfect

As soon as you reject imperfection
you reject yourself
you close off a huge part of life...

If a situation or person cannot be changed
it takes COURAGE to choose to
unconditionally love

Rejection,
the path of limitation,
which is to
euthanase
part of
YOU

Instincts In A Stink

2008-10-30T17:13:00.010+10:00

Instinct is the inherent disposition of a living organism toward a particular behavior. Instincts are unlearned, inherited fixed action patterns of responses or reactions to certain kinds of stimuli. Examples of instinctual fixed action patterns can be observed in the behavior of animals, which perform various activities (sometimes complex) that are not based upon prior experience and do not depend on emotion or learning, such as reproduction, and feeding among insects. Other examples include animal fighting, animal courtship behavior, internal escape functions, and building of nests.......

Instinctual actions - in contrast to actions based on learning which is served by memory and which provides individually stored successful reactions built upon experience - have no learning curve, they are hard-wired and ready to use without learning, but do depend on maturational processes to appear.

* * * * *

In stinks.

Could instincts stink of something we shouldn't be in?

It's a funny word, really - instincts. We usually associate the word with primeval hunters stalking their prey and about to pounce. The instincts of wild cats, for instance.

Our instincts also warn of danger by reading the environment. Sometimes, we can know a dicey situation before our conscious mind recognises it.

Can our instincts be wrong?

I think we can be wrong about what we think is an instinct, when instead it is a misplaced sense of subjective judgment. Perhaps this is why we might instantly judge someone or something, then it's later you are proved wrong.

And sometimes we might put instinct aside as... you are being silly! It's because ____ reminds you of _____ situation!" etc.

I think reading what is instinct and what isn't comes with maturity and age... (the Iggy Park boys daily riding their bikes on the wrong side of the road on a blind corner... for example!)

Inherited fixed action patterns... memory and experience... but do depend on maturational processes to appear.

Do we ever get it right?

I think that depends on how we view the world... and our faith in our own abilities... as well as our health and even our environment... what do you think? Do your instincts speak to you often? How right and true are they?

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....

Tagged

2008-10-26T19:00:00.003+10:00

OK, fellow twinnie Anne Dundas tagged me... I'll play... but seven blogs... SEVEN?

Ok, so here are the tagging rules…

1. Link to your blog (tagger) on my blog.

2. Give seven facts about yourself.

3. Tag another seven blogs by leaving a comment on their blog and letting them know they were tagged and listing them (and their blogs) on your blog.

………………………..

OK I decided to do 2 lists... one facts, the other as a way of acknowledging my own virtues and strengths....

1. I was born in Papua New Guinea and we had a native house servant (colonialist imperialistic times! Ugh!)
2. I designed a coat of arms for a shire (Jondaryan Shire near Toowoomba)
3. I was the youngest paid radio announcer in Australia in my day...
4. I've had three home waterbirths & one home miscarriage
5. I touched the Da Lai Lama on the shoulder and he nodded and smiled at me - I didn't know who he was until later, just knew a compelling urge to touch him (peak moment)
6. I've seen quite a few UFO's, ghosts, etc over the years.... ;)
7. I have my own real life spirit quest in progress...

1. I am grateful for being able to homeschool my children AND want to
2. I love making beauty and art whether it's glass or paints it is wonderful to create something incredible... or thought provoking... I love my gift there
3. I love the spiritual side of me, and how when I am in tune, magic things happen
4. I am grateful to be able to serve my paralysed cat Bella and keep her alive
5. I accept all people from all walks of life
6. I do my best to be respectful to everyone, from animals, kids to whomever
7. My carbon footprint is pretty tiny, really...

………………………..

And the list of seven blogs I’ve tagged…

Michelle

Kim Miles

Vonna

Lavender

Look 4 /7 is pretty good! There's a few blogs I visit based on art, gardening, home grown food, homeschool blogs, spirituality, etc ... but they don't know me, or know OF me (there's a difference LOL) so....

Beam Me Up...

2008-10-25T20:46:00.001+10:00

The Day after the Night Before a Strange Sighting

2008-10-12T21:28:00.007+10:00

(Please read previous blog post to make sense of this one!)

well... !!!!!

Tonight I sat outside at the time span I saw last night's strange apparition and a normal plane passed by. It was heaps smaller, heaps faster and the lights were nothing like.... it looked just as a plane should.

Today, I went past the airport and saw a huge grey jet in there. I guessed a grey plane would be hard to see at night, explaining why it was tricky to make out the shape of it.... but later that afternoon it actually flew overhead and the noise left me no doubt this was not it. Also, it would have to had been flying vertically to be able to see all four lights...

So
I am still
in the dark..

Our UFO Sighting

2008-10-11T21:37:00.006+10:00

Ocurred approx. 9pm. Written about 9.40pm

Pixie and I were outside, Ruby was doing what dogs do. We saw a strange looking plane in the sky.

It came from the left, which is a flight path and headed in the right direction. It suddenly became larger quickly and the lights were all wrong. The red lights were on the right, and the green lights were on the left. There were two at the back and two at the front. (You shouldn't be able to see all four lights at once anyhow when a plane is flying). I saw an extra blue light there... and the sense of a large tail fin that was this very dim glowy electric light blue.

I could only mostly make out the lights not the shape of the aircraft except briefly. It seemed longer than a large airplane and somehow thicker too. I watched it get to the palm trees, as I called the kids out to see it, then raced over towards the fence to keep watching it. It seemed much closer, and seemed to glide somehow... or hover glide....

The kids came out and Zake and Jayson caught the last few seconds and Nirrimi just missed it. It seemed to be a lot closer than my mind could accept, but we couldn't hear it and you just don't expect to see something so unusual. It's descent path was sharp to make me think it would not be able to land at the airport, that it was landing much closer and off the flight path.

Pixie.
We were out the front and we saw lights. It looked like a plane or jet. It had a pointy end and there were 4 lights 2 reds, 1 blue, 1 green. We couldn't hear anything and it was going down pretty steep. Nirrimi, Zake and Jayson went running down the street thinking it was a UFO.

Zake
I saw a round object leaving the trees beyond the house.

Nirrimi.
I raced outside and saw nothing.
(Note: Nirrimi arrived just as it slipped out of sight)

My mind cannot think this is an airplane because the red and green lights were on the wrong side. It seemed somehow too long and too thick and just DIFFERENT... to be a normal aircraft. We all felt amazed.... it was that surreal and REAL....

On Fireflies

2008-09-22T20:53:00.002+10:00

The other night I saw my first firefly in over a decade - in my front garden!

I believe we have encounters with the nature kingdom for a reason - or if not, that if we can see a reason, we are richer people for it.

This little firefly was a luminescent green, flashing and cruising around... then he would land on the ground, with his light off for a few minutes, turn it back on, then fly off again, then to rest and fly...

He reminded me of how life is such paradox of experiences... at one moment we are shining our light.... but we also need to take a break, rest and recuperate - the world will still be there....

I hope that little firefly found a mate. I'd love to see them more often, they are such ethereal magical beings...

Candy Eyes - Biological Illogical Alien Thingamabobs

2008-09-19T11:35:00.000+10:00

To Quest, or not to Quest?

2008-09-13T10:00:00.004+10:00

My spiritual quest is bubbling around in my mind. Obsessively. To the point of monomania.

Negatives (since sometimes it is always easier to find why not than how to...)

* repercussions from militant close minded folk
* could it really be life threatening as someone suggested & it made sense, with Big Brother wanting the booty at all costs to further their own agendas? Could I handle death threats or risking my life? What about my kids, maybe I should wait? But if I wait.... well it will always be there...
* ridicule, disbelief, defamation which all fit into the above two
* it hasn't got a resolution (yet) I've reached a dead end
* it will involve at least two journeys physically - how do I wrangle that?
* I'm scared - of both possibilities - that is, failure AND success. I don't want to fail because I want to find out more, but success is scary because of the above factors...
* I have my own issues of "what right have I..." "I am not good enough, I don't deserve..." "How dare I have the audacity...." "why ME????" and "this is just crazy!!!!!"
* I've been "sitting" on this for several years, if it was meant to be, it would have happened (but who am I to judge the perfect timing?)
* my mind cannot fathom how the situation as it is can change... I have some ideas, but they all involve waiting...
* I haven't finished the editing of "Native Symbols", I get requests for it on a weekly basis, if I can't follow thru with this, how can I expect to take on something bigger?

Positive (go for it baby!)

* it could change the history of the world - here could be the biggest , technological, scientific and archaeological finds EVER with huge ramifications as to how we view our world! Not one, but two!
* it's exciting, mind boggling, adventurous, amazing, fantastic and even unreal - but its true
* I believe in destiny & that somehow I am an intrinsic part of this, even if I don't know why. If I am not meant to be the one propelling this, then Life will keep this a deadend... but then sometimes Life tests your resolution to push past barriers, maybe that is what is happening... how do I know? I digress...
* it's spiritual and might provide answers to Big Questions
* its something I really, really, really want to explore

Things I can do.... in the meantime...

* meditate, pray, ask for guidance
* not worry - put it into the hands of God (thankyou Spirit-Hawk)
* focus on how it is part of the New Earth (hugs purps)
* expect a lead, accept waiting, if it comes follow it with passion
* believe in myself and remind myself of that feeling of destiny this gives me when I feel doubt
* work on my belief systems and free up what area in my thinking is blocking me

OK nuf weirding you out... if you read the above, thankyou for giving me the space and being witness to my inner journey....

Candy Eyes - Emerging...

2008-09-11T10:25:00.001+10:00

The Death of a Tree

2008-09-10T09:27:00.002+10:00

View Larger Map

Have you ever watched an old tree being cut down?

Proud mango tree, thirty plus years old,
it dropped leaves on the neighbour's roof.
Bats would probably crap from it too,
when the mangos are ripening.
Bad tree.

That tree had a deva in it
I could see it from my back yard
a proud profile
a spirit in the leaves.

Bad tree.

Limb my limb dismembered
each branch dropping
with each tear I shed.

Sometimes I hate being
empathic
that word should be
empathetic.

Hmmm... a Bella Trick!

2008-09-08T12:31:00.003+10:00

Last night, whilst giving Bella some "physio" she moved her leg at least 15cm with control... and she has soooo much strength to push against me lately.... and her tail has been major responsive....

I am also sure she is "helping" me more now when I express her bladder....

It would be so awesome.... tho with such little muscle tone left... but if she could just hobble one day ... she is such a beautiful soul....

Spring Days....

2008-09-07T09:18:00.005+10:00

Here's our Madame Bella surveying her domain this morning - the duds for her did NOT work, she left them behind as she leapt from the couch... hmmm... maybe there is some way to attach a velcro strap around her neck to the top of the 'skirt'?....

My garden is blooming!

First tomatoes - green striped zebras

You might hafta click on the pic to get bigger version -
the mango trees are wonky this year you can see a fruit well grown
but then we had a second flowering... huh?

THIS naughty bug is abolishing my zuchini!!!!!

My dragonfruit is finally sending off a little sprout....

And... a baby watermelon...

LOVE bottlebrush!!!!

And ooooooh.... a strange thing growing in a bead....

Bella Update

2008-09-06T21:26:00.002+10:00

Thankyou Michelle, for the great idea. :)

Somethings the obvious eludes many... and this is one of those "why didn't I think of this", or think to ask, ages ago? I'm not the only one aware of Bella's situation, and it has gotten worse recently.... and to think the answer was not exactly staring me in the face, but keeping my butt and legs warm, hehe... so I am putting it to the test, to see if it stays on with Bella's wanderings and climbings...

Yes, Bella is now wearing my marone pyjama pants and looking as sleek as any well dressed movie star in a strapless gown... :) I am certain she is quite happy about wearing clothes, just like her family does. Also, it distinguishes her from the dog (you call that a dog, she says... pointing to Ruby, two thirds her size... )

Bella & Chonky

Confucius say...

2008-09-03T10:01:00.001+10:00

Ability will never catch up with the demand for it...

Confucius

Find Your Dreaming Totems

2008-08-31T21:11:00.003+10:00

I am feeling pretty excited! I have just "put on paper" an idea I have had for several years.

Find Your Dreaming Totems – Exploring the ancient Spiritual Lessons of the Australian Aboriginal People in a modern context

problem solving skills for self growth

At various times I am asked if I "give workshops", and one of the more interesting ones was for the local Womens' Centre. I could also do this one at job training network situations as well.... so it has some adaptability as to venue.

I know of several past instances where the "Oracle of the Dreamtime" has been used in a group therapy social work context... it really does have the versatility of being incorporated in such an environment... So... ta daaaaaa.... I am stoked with self accomplishment :)

And... last week I wrote 85% of an article on Green pets. They are, afterall, the BEST colour you can have, when it comes to our beloved companions...

Hmmmm.... I am so happy my writing is coming back to me after so long away from it...

Life is Good....
with
puppy kisses
pollen sunshine on my growing vege garden
children squealing laughter
and
the magic of having glass and fire...

Direct Link - Newspaper Article

2008-08-31T11:57:00.003+10:00

THIS

is a different pic to what was actually in the paper...
but it was cool to find :))

On Right Tracks

2008-08-28T11:16:00.002+10:00

I am thrilled
my 14 year old son got 95% marking
on his first assignment!!!!!!

16 Years of Motherhood

2008-08-27T15:46:00.003+10:00

Today I turned 16 years,
as a mother...

This time 16 years ago, the miracle of life touched me...
the first spring flowers were abundant,
the magnolia opening and unfurling
like the child close to my heart...

First smiles at 3am, blurry photographic images...
projectile chunders, fists full of shells and flowers,
toddler steps splashing in the ocean,
little child fantasy games, hours spent in the doll house...
later, hours spent drawing and writing...
now its photography.

It's a nice synchronicity,
NIRRIMI means
flashing moonlight reflected on water...
not just any old moonlight,
but the moonlight that flashes
like a zillion cameras...

Today she is a confident, creative, amazing soul...

I love my Nirrimi
(heaps n heaps...)

Where have all my beadies gone?

2008-08-22T09:36:00.003+10:00

Where have all my beadies gone?

They're growing in my head...

Maybe next week
life will slow down a little
and I can
make
them....

My son Zake is back from Germany, 8 days already....
yaaaaaay!!!!!
The house is a lot noisier now
and inundated with teenage boys...

I've signed Zake up for one module of this course,
yet to work out the finer points of his attending one day a week
work experience at Internet Solutions
and start on sorting Maths & English education
then write it all up with goals and projected outcomes
then I have satisfied the Department of Education...

Not going the normal route just yet
it never worked before..
"if you keep on doing what you always done -
you keep on getting what you always got"
and the System, as such, never fully worked...

Can only try these things...

So this is gonna impact on my glass productivity
(what's it been, a couple of weeks now...)
Hopefully once we get into the momentum of a routine,
the beads will start flowing...

One last one... Avalon Days

2008-08-11T17:29:00.002+10:00

One last one...

This is the tree my son's placenta was buried next to... and where he was born!

View Larger Map

And a special place for me, me and my two babies went here almost every day and I still have the tiny piece opf fossilised twig I found in the sand....

View Larger Map

Various Sydney abodes... (yaaaaawn)

2008-08-11T16:12:00.003+10:00

Man I love google streets...

This place was called The New Caledonia (was a pub once) and I was a squatter there for a few months. Back then it was left for artists to reside in, and the family were disputing it so the squatters moved in... I initially room sat for a friend while she went on holidays, so her room wouldn't be taken. It was the 2nd story up, and no wall so I could look straight out over Pyrmont Harbour... The bricks along the side are convict constructed...

View Larger Map

I then moved up the street to the Top Squats (which I can't get to on streets) but this is below where they were, giving you a low down version of the view... used to be able to sit in the bath and wave at the top of Centrepoint Tower... The views were spectacular!

View Larger Map

After this point, I decided I needed the discipline of RENT so I moved to infamous Everleigh Street, Redferns (stereotyped Aboriginal ghetto back then...) Those houses look worse now...

View Larger Map

This was my first place in Sydney, on Glebe Point Road... a little flat buried almost in the cellar at the back. It's some kind of back packers now...

View Larger Map

I also used to live here - the shop on the left next to the white building that was/is a garage. It was called "The Lazy Roo Cafe" and had a stuffed kangaroo in the window. Lewis was an obsessive buyer at auctions and when I moved in, it was so full you had to turn sideways to get to the kitchen it was piled to the ceiling with manequins, boxes of clothes, furniture, books, over 200 guitars, gongs, you name it... I remember him buying a suitcase of junk at the auctions and at the bottom, under some cardboard were some etchings from the 1600's!!!! Bizarre huh? That place sure was a fire hazard but it represents a huge part of my bohemian life back then. I met Lewis buying a flute from him in the Trading Post, which I used to busk in Central Tunnel with... near Broadway there... I later worked at a secondhand bookshop right across the road called "Nonesuch Books."

One time a friend and I walked all along King Street in the (then) Telecomm tunnels under the footpath! That sure was bizarre...

View Larger Map

Below is the old bookshop - I took much pleasure in displaying books in the two windows!!!!

View Larger Map

OK I am google streeted out now.... but its a small record of part of my life history....

The Blue Roof

2008-08-11T13:17:00.001+10:00

Read below the below post to read my latest entry...
hmmmmm....

On Dog's Anal Glands (Do not read if Sensitive....)

2008-08-10T15:27:00.005+10:00

Hmmmm.... We've had Ruby a couple of weeks now. Dues to her obsession with chewing at herself, the occasional bum scooting and the foul stench her skin emits just a couple of days after a bath, I reckon her anal glands need expressing...

Chonky needed this done every few months. My vet bud Ed says if left untended, it can lead to skin problems and other feral things. He said diet CAN play a huge part in it, but some dogs just seem to need it. I always felt a little sorry for Chonky, his huge finger & her teeny butt (hehe)

So picture the two teens- one the model the other the photographer - sitting on the other side of my pc, with another person (read beauty queen makeup artist dance teacher genius type pretty pretty girl) doing the makeup for a shoot, and I start playing the below video... what a hoot.... (((The comment pasted below the video had me in peals.... at which time I apologised profusely to the sensitive natures of these lasses, hehe....)

By the way, I am on the extreme end of needle phobia (heart palpations, vomiting, erratic heart rate, the works) however anything medical that does not involve needles (or scalpels, etc) does not phase me. I can handle vomit, urine, excreta, scabs, wounds, puss, all those glorious things that are a part of life. Guess a few years under my belt of babies and nappy changing did me some good there... I also express my cat's bladder 2-3 times a day and sometimes her bowel too if it's chockers. So if I can save some bucks and do anal glands myself, I will...

Please be advised,
that you should only perform this procedure on your own dogs and never someone else's.
source here

Post Script

I opted for gloveless method, her glands were easily detected, hooray!
Didn't get much out, but figure its a learning curve
like getting the knack for Bella's bladder...
hmmmm.... ;p

ze Paper

2008-08-09T06:18:00.001+10:00

click on article to read :)

The Blue Roof

2008-08-08T07:21:00.004+10:00

View Larger Map

Well here goes a diary kind of entry for you... since luxury items, in my case, aren't selling so well in the current financial climate, online bead sales are one fifth of what they were (thank goodness for other outlets like Beadz, Bitz & Bobz, and commissions)... and my life seems to be winding DOWN (UP?) to a new phase of change.... it's difficult sometimes to just TRUST that everything WILL work out for the Highest Good...

Things behind the facade of the white walls and blue roof are changing! (And hey, I am in the phone book, if some psycho really wants to find me I haven't made it much easier by posting this....) For some fill in, I have so many kids living here one sleeps on the couch! One extra has been living here over 5 weeks with no income and finally I have reached out for help, the struggle has been too much and so I just had a Food Bank drop off with some food vouchers!

How do I feel about accepting charity? About needing to? I've tried my best with this kid, the jobs that never materialised, trying to understand and juggle my finances... battling resentment and lack of understanding at the mother who can just offload a kid like that... and what a great kid she is at that!!!!!

My brain has been exploding with trying to help someone out... "they" say being selfless is a key to enlightenment but it hasn't worked out that way for me at least... I feel like I am in some murky world instead, lol.

My son is returning to Australia in 4 days so this is a huge life change after he has spent a year and a half based in Germany. Beads will be taking a backseat now as I sort out education and parenting his unique personality... (he has a tentative diagnosis of Aspergers Syndrome) I am very happy he is returning... but it means a few decisions need to be made, and they aren't all easy ones...

We also have Bella, the paralysed cat who is waiting for me to save up the funds for her wheelchair, and Ruby a little pound dog (said in heavy Elvis accent) and then there is Elmo our bright yellow canary who sits hanging on a bough under the mango tree in the daytime, (you can see the tree to the right behind the blue roof) singing away and flirting with the mynahs... so there's a few souls residing behind that gate to the house with the blue roof.... and a bit of turmoil and change brewing... who woulda guessed? !!!

Last Night

2008-08-06T12:20:00.003+10:00

Last night

for the first time

I dreamt

my death...

It was quick,
a mere fleeting passing
from one dimension to the other.
Easy.

But the panic!

It's a one way door!

Trying to contact my children...
who would look after them?
how can they be without me?

they need their mother!

This isn't fair!
the desperation...
the anguish...

the power of LOVE

trying to break through the barriers

to push a pen across paper
to write
I am still here
I will
Never
leave you

I'm just behind this curtain

I'm still here

there's just a wall...

but I am STILL here....

It was a scary dream.

I've never dreamt my death before...

Bits n Pieces

2008-08-04T07:46:00.004+10:00

We were tricked... !!!!
Ruby isn't two,
she's still teething and vet says she is 6 months to a year old..
I believe that, she's chewed my $$$ glasses while I napped,
and the book I had borrowed to read of a friend's...!!!!!!

(Goodness, I hope they got her breed right,
and she doesn't turn into a doberman!!!!!)

Chewing aside, she's a little ripper!
Full of character and manic energy.
Bella snuggles near her like she did Chonky...
it's all good....

I've been busy with some Aboriginal colour beads for a pal from my school days,
some little birdies for the local bead shop -
this HUGE slump in my ebay sales has me creatively stretching myself to
"bread & butter" production....
well, it's all good... to be versatile, right?

There was something on Radio National about an upcoming recession.
That's scary when you make luxury items
(but maybe in times of depression, the beauty I create will be even more treasured?
well... that sounds good in theory, hehehehehe....)

OK Miss 9 is home, time to get ready for the bike ride to school,
dawg riding in shoulder bag... of course!!!!!

Donni

2008-08-02T07:41:00.002+10:00

loves feeling inspired & being creative

Prayer of St Francis - Sara McLaughlin

2008-08-01T07:51:00.000+10:00

In Praise of People Who Care for Animals

2008-07-28T15:27:00.002+10:00

Talking of the RSPCA again today...
I had a knock on the door...
Man in Uniform...
RSPCA inspector acting on a complaint about a cat with a broken back...

Yay for people who see and care (tho I prefer to be approached directly)
Yay for the RSPCA... who can look out for the "speechless" souls in our care...
and yay for people who CAN see that, altho cats are independent and agile,
a handicapped cat CAN have quality of life...
be open for a change of view...
(if I read right how our conversation went...)

I think this guy, at first, didn't believe a cat could be happy with just two working legs
(and he's had a couple of recent cases where the owners just didnt seem to care)
but I had some wonderful words from my vet bud Ed -
"animals don't emotionalise handicaps as we do..."
and it gets me thru seeing Bella dragging herself around
(tho when hyper she scoots around faster than lightning!!!!!)
Maybe it was that sentence that is the key to accepting Bella's life.

For an update, myself and two friends measured Bella up for her wheelchair,
(which I can only get from USA - thank goodness for a great exchange rate here!)
I sent the measurements in, stating that as soon as we lifted Bells back legs up to measure her,
she'd start walking so measurements B, C & D are NOT accurate...
Their look of the measurements are they ARE way out...
and they are the ones most important.
I tell ya, it's gonna take FOUR people to measure her to get it right..
really!

Well Bella has accepted the new addition...
altho her and Chonky did not canoodle they always lay half a metre apart in the sun,
slept with me in my bed,
both followed me around the place -
they were always near each other.
Bella spent a few days crying a lot, and demanding so much extra attention
it affected her too.
Ruby seems to have just slotted in...
filled a void somehow...
for everyone.
Heartless as that sounds
(nothing could replace Chonky... just her void...)

So... there's my pet update.
Beads? Yes, I made 4 focals yesterday
I have a lousy flu, been vegging all day feeling terribly seedy
tomorrow will be photos...
then you can see...
I can still create some beauty in this world...:)

Ruby Freda

2008-07-28T09:16:00.002+10:00

Well it was NOT planned. Not even the trip to the refuge...
and I didn't pick her,
she picked ME !!!!

I burst into tears as soon as I saw her,
swallowing the sobs
so I didnt have to tell them
death of one pet
meant I was pet-less
(well dog-less - to be precise!)

Ruby just waited for me... in a pen with 3 other dogs
she was the one at the front patiently sitting,
expecting me to come back....

How could I NOT?

She is 2 years old.
Ringworm, skinny,
OURS

I took her for her first bike ride today.
Plonked her in my Mambo shoulder bag,
hitched her over my shoulder,
good as gold!

Get home, let her out,
pet her for being good,
she trots over to my bicycle,
looks up at the bag hooked on the handlebars
cries... and looks at me.... then back at the bag...

She wanted to go for another bike ride!
Smart dawg, eh? :)

So my daughters are laughing again
I am laughing again
at our
zwergpinscher....

***
The Townsville Animal Refuge are putting down over 10 pets a day... this is huge and affecting their staff... so sad... Two things - the increase in cost of living PLUS more and more rental places are not allowing pets... and there is a huge shortfall of lower income rentals available overall however there are many new suburbs cropping up outside Townsville, massive construction... yet even here, according to someone I know in the industry, the houses are all being built but no one is buying and its a worry... what a crazy world! And I guess, the saddest thing is the voiceless victims of pets released to the pound out of necessity in lack of available accomodation that is pet friendly, or an inability to financially feed them... so sad!!!!!!

Self-Portrait in Glass

2008-07-24T12:19:00.000+10:00

Beadzzzzzzzz

2008-07-23T22:53:00.007+10:00

Beadzzzzzzzz

Yes, I still make them.....

I have 3 beautiful focals I made yesterday
just needing their sonar bath,
me to find the missing macro lens (apres toddler in the house-
toddlers are very handy critters to hang blame on, hehe),
photograph and list....

Life has been bordering on chaos for me lately,
a spate of negative seeming events, one after the other and
in the maelstrom, creativity (and time) seem to
have flown out the door
(with the icy winds & falling mango flowers....)

I trust the muse
to be here when I need Her
most of the times
she pulls through.

Today
she was gone.
The machines
ran almost all day
and nothing was made.

"you know who you are"

Thank you
for the kind words you sent me
for thinking of me ...
It means a lot to me.

I'm missing my ChonkStar,
here's a silly mini video
taken earlier this year
by the then 8 year old
camera fanatic...

(which didnt upload properly so I am off to bed.... will try again tomorrow!)

On Death

2008-07-22T12:33:00.002+10:00

God says to Chonky,
"Hey little buddy, you're only gonna get 4 years,
you still wanna take this mission?"

HELL YES!!!!!

There's a lotta love to give
smiles to make n laughs to cause
telegraph poles to pee under
and snuggles galore

There's a lot you can pack into 4 years!!!!

The thing is,
the hole that is left
is bigger than
anything
anyone
could
imagine